Coin operated display device utilizing threaded time storage member

ABSTRACT

A coin-operated card display device equipped with a window behind which a customer may place in public view a previously prepared advertising card, notice, or the like, with the number of coins deposited in the device determining the length of time a given card remains on display. This invention advantageously involves a threaded time storage means that is indexed in a first or time storage direction by the coins deposited by the customer, and then periodically and incrementally indexed in a second or time utilization direction by an electrically-controlled return means, thus to prevent an unlimited display privilege.

llite Forrester,

1 1 COIN OPERATED DISPLAY DEVICE UTILIZING THREADED TIME STORAGE MEMBER [76] Inventor: Leonard R. Forrester, 687 Harold Avc., Winter Park, Fla.

122' Filed: June 21, 1971 [211 App]. No.: 155,181

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 171,662 2 1922 Great Britain 194/61 1 1 Mar. 5, 1974 Primary Examiner-Robert B. Reeves Assistant ExuminerFrancis J. Bartuska Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Julian C. Rcnfro [57] ABSTRACT A coin-operated card display device equipped with a window behind which a customer may place in public view a previously prepared advertising card, notice, or the like, with the number of coins deposited in the device determining the length of time a given card remains on display. This invention advantageously involves a threaded time storage means that is indexed in a first or time storage direction by the coins deposited by the customer, and then periodically and incrementally indexed in a second or time utilization direction by an electrically-controlled return means, thus to prevent an unlimited display privilege.

15 Claims, 35 Drawing Figures PATENTEUHAR 51974 SHEET '01 or 10- INVENTOR LEONARD Q. FZDEQESTEQ ATTORNEY PATENFEBHAR 5 i974 SHEET new 10 INVENTOR LEONARD E. FOQIQESTELQ ATTORNEY PATENTEDHAR 51974 INVENTOR sum '03 [1F 10 PATENTEDHAR -5 I974 INVENTOR ATTORNEY PATENTEUIMR 5 I814 sum 'us [1F 10 INVENTOR LEONARD E. FOREESTER ATTORNEY PATENTEDMAR 51914 592 M 6 5 m. m

I NVE N TOR LEONARD IQ, FOIQEESTER 4 7 W 5 R A H D E T N E l A P SHEET 107 0F 10 INVENTOR LEONAQD E; FOQQESTEQ ATTORNEY PAIEN'rEn -m 1w sum (08 0F 10 INVENTOR LEONARD 1Q. FORREST/5R ATTORNEY PATENTED W4 sum 10UF 10 INVENTOR ATTORNEY COIN OPERATED DISPLAY DEVICE UTILIZING THREADED TIME STORAGE MEMBER REFERENCE TO RELATED INVENTION The present invention may be regarded as related to my US. Pat. No. 3,145,8l9entitled Coin Controlled Card Display Device, which issued Aug. 25, 1964, featuring a beaded chain whose movements deterv mined the display period of a customers card.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention pertains to the display of previously prepared message card, advertisement, or other such notice, and more particularly, to a coin-operated device for displaying such cards in'an attractive and convenient manner.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a generally rectangular housing member for the protection and encasement of certain internally located mechanisms responsible for limiting theleng th of time the card, poster or the like inserted by a patron remains in public view through a protective display window.'A card insertion slot is disposed on the housing member adjacent internally disposed card holding means, and movable gate means controls the opening of the card insertion slot to prevent tampering with or removal of a card until a purchased display period has expired.

The display device is activated by conveniently. disposed, .rotatably movable operating handle which transmits motion imparted by the customer to a toothed cam and gear member. Latter member causes some rotation of a threaded screw member, upon which is. utilized a threaded traveler member that serves to store time.

By depositing a first coin and with a single turn of the operating handle, the patron causes the threaded traveler to move in what may be regarded as a time storage direction, and further causes movement of a slidable actuating member into a latched position. This in turn causes the card holdingmeans to be latched in a position for receiving and displaying the patrons message or advertising card. The same movement'of the slidable actuating member causes the-gate controlling the card insertion slot to be opened so that the card can be inserted, and also causes a microswitch to be closed, thus completing an electrical circuit between a time utilization or dissipating means, and a central timing mechanism.

'The above-mentioned events occur with the deposition of a first coin, with each subsequent coin serving only to move the traveler additional increments in the time storage direction until the maximum display period has been purchased. The customer is prevented from depositing more than a certain number of coins at a time by an override safety means which is engaged by the traveler at an extreme position of travel.

In order to prevent an unlimited display privilege, means are provided to periodically and incrementally move the traveler a pre-established amount in an oppo site or time utilizationdirection, with such movement continuing until the purchased display period has expired. When such period has elapsed, the traveler, by engaging a release member, releases the slidable actuating member so that it causes the card holding member to rotate and eject the card on display. The microswitch contact is also opened, thus removing the time dissipation arrangement from the central timing circuit, and readying the device for use by another person.

It is therefore a primary object of my invention to provide a display device of attractive appearance, low cost, and great dependability.

It is another object of my invention to provide a coin operated display device advantageously utilizing a nonintricate threaded time storage means.

It is yet another object of my invention to provide a coin operated display device utilizing a threaded traveler as a principal member of a novel time storage means, whose movement to an extreme position in one direction prevents the further insertion of coins, and whose movement to an extreme position in the other direction after a suitable time lapse causes the automatic ejection of a card on display.

It is still another object of my invention to provide means for attractively grouping and supporting a plurality of my display units and to further provide for electrically interconnecting a plurality of units to a single outside power source.

It is yet still another object of my invention to provide a means of inserting a coin or other purchasing agent into a display unit, to further provide a common coin retrieval bin for the coins which may fall from a grouped plurality of adjacently disposed display units, and to provide means for removing slugs or other counterfeit purchasing agents from the coin receiving mechanism.

It is a still further object of my invention to provide means for indicating the amount of purchased time remaining for the display of a given advertising card or similar notice.

These and other objects, features, and advantages of my invention will becomeapparent from an inspection of the appended drawings in which;

FIG. I is a perspective view of atypical display unit in accordance with my invention, with certain portions broken away to reveal significant internal construction;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view to a somewhat smaller scale of a typical grouping of display units of the type shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front sectional view toa large scale of a group of display units, revealing an internally located coin retrieval bin;

FIG. 4 is a side view in section, related to FIG. 3 and showing details of the card collection and coin retrieval means;

FIG. 5 is a view representing in considerable detail, the principal portions of the present novel time storage mechanism;

FIG. 6 is a view related to FIG. 5, drawn to a somewhat smaller scale, of the time storage means and the card supporting means;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary view representing the mechanism whereby a display card can be ejected;

FIG. 8 is a top view revealing the action of the card ejection means upon a card;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view revealing other details of the card holding means;

FIG. 10 is another fragmentary view, this one showing details of the override safety mechanism;

FIG. 11 is a top view showing certain details of the time dissipation means and gate manipulation means;

FIG. 12 is a side view generally related to FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view of the push button release, showing its interior construction;

FIG. 14 is another view of the push button release;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the gate opening cam and the gate contactedthereby;

FIG. 16 is a top-view showing the gate in the closed position;

FIG. 17 shows the gate opening cam moving the gate to the open position;

FIG. 18 is a top view with the .cam disposed below the plane of the gate member;

FIG. 19 is a top view of the gate and gate spring;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the interior of the main frame assembly shown to some extent in FIG. 5;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the rotating ratchet member;

FIG. 22 is-another perspective view showing constructional details of another sub-unit of the frame assembly shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 23 is a front view of the frame assembly with portions broken away to show the direction determining pawl, the U-shaped coin bearing slot, and the locking cam arrangement;

FIGS. 24 and 25 are related views revealing the interaction of the locking cam with a coin; I

FIG. 26 is a view showing transfer of the coin to the lateral coin chute;

FIG. 27 is a related view revealing the action of the direction determining pawl member;

FIG. 28 is a perspective view to a large scale of a channel member, showing the manner in which it engages-a representative support pin;

FIG. 29 is a sectional view revealing how electrical contact is established between a typical support pin and an. electrical contact button disposed in an adjacently disposed channel member;

FIG. 30 is a top sectional view showing the manner in which the support pins of adjacent display devices engage the adjacent channel member and also revealing how the side rails and front flange members of such units align to provide a common coin slot or channel;

FIG. 3] is a front view in somewhat fragmentary form of a typical display unit, with certain portions broken away to show among other things how flexible wires may be routed through a convenient groove disposed in the adjacent channel member;

FIG. 32 is a view'of the timing means for periodically activating the solenoid to bring about movement of the traveler in a time utilization direction;

FIG. 33 is a view related to FIG. 32 but with one of the flexible arms of the timing disc shown in a deflected position shortly before it causes the microswitch contacts to be momentarily closed;

FIG. 34 is a top view of the clock mechanism used to drive the disc; and

FIG. 35 is a circuit diagram of the present timing arrangement.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Turning first to FIG. 1, it will there be seen that I have illustrated a preferred version of my invention, exemplified by a card display device 10 in the form of a generally rectangular housing. In the top portion 14 of the housing is disposed a card insertion slot 16 through which a customer may insert a prepared display card, poster or the like of the appropriate size; a coin slot 18 into which such a customer may deposit coins of the proper denomination; and a push button release 20, the action of which is to be explained later.

The left and right side portions 21 of the card display device may utilize rails 22, which are disposed at an angle to the vertical. These rails provide with the front edges 23, a part of a common coin channel which, as discussed hereinafter, is created when two adjacent units are fastened together in side by side relation. The interlocking of a number of units together in the somewhat angled manner shown in FIG. 2 is facilitated by the use of a plurality of non-vertically aligned support pins 24, which in addition to serving a mechanical function, provide an electrical interconnection ofa plurality of display units in a manner that will afterward be more fully described.

The front portion 25 of mycard display device 10 is typically equipped with a viewing window 26, behind which the card or poster inserted through slot 16 is displayed. A portion of the display unit illustrated in FIG. 1 is broken away to reveal a card holding orcard receiving member 28 and compression spring 30, which are constructionally related to the push button release 20. FIG. 1 also reveals that the front portion of my card display device 10 contains a slug removal slot 32 through which means can be inserted for removing .bent coins, coins of the wrong denomination, counterfeit coins, and the-like. Disposed adjacent the slug removal slot is an operating handle 34 whose function is to actuate the time storage means in a first direction as will be more fully described, such actuation requiring the operating handle to be turned by the customer in a given direction as indicated by arrow 36, or as explained by operating instructions 38 disposed near an indicator 40. Latter device provides a graphic indication of the time interval remaining for the display of a given customers card.

Referring now to FIG. 2 it will be noted that a number of display units may be grouped attractively, with retention in this position being facilitated by the use of a slotted channel member 42 as hereinafter described, which slides over the support pins 24 shown in FIG. 1 when the units are being assembled in the stacked relation. Alternatively, the slotted channel members may be fastened to the floor or otherwise fixed in properly spaced positions to receive the individual display units, which are lowered into place so that the non-vertically aligned supported pins engage appropriate grooves of the channel member and thereby maintain each individual display device in such a slightly offset or staggered relationship in relation to other display units as to prevent the occlusion of the slots 16 and 18 of the next lower unit.

It will be noted that the subject matter of the display cards may be quite diverse, as the sample ads 44 and 46 illustrated in FIG. 2 indicate. Quite obviously a large number of my display units can be grouped and conveniently placed in such areas of concentrated pedestrian traffic as supermarkets, shopping centers, airports and the like to meet the varied display requirements of a plurality of customers.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate in somewhat fragmentary form, a representative grouping of a plurality of display units, portions of which are broken away to reveal how by the somewhat staggered alignment of the various units, the deposited coins 46'may fall via lateral coin chutes 48 and coin channels-50 to a lockable coin retrieval bin 52 for collection at a convenient time by the owner or his duly appointed service personnel. These figures as well as FIG. reveal how the channels 22 and front edges 23 of two adjacent units together form the coin channels 50. The aforementioned alignment of the units is also such as to permit the display cards 54, rejected after the expiration of a purchased time storage interval, to fall behind the display units into a card collection bin 56 for disposal at some convenient time. The back portions of the individual units 10 may be open, and a rear frame member 53 used to prevent unauthorized access to the units or bins.

Turning now to FIG. 5, it will there be seen that I have illustrated a multi-layered frame assembly 55 having provision for the coin slot l8, and upon which assembly is mounted certain of the principal components involved in the functioning of my device. Of considerable importance to my invention is a large camand gear member 58 of a configuration less than a full circle, whose periphery is equipped with substantially evenly spaced teeth 57 disposed at an equal distance from theaxis of rotation of member 58. .The cam and gear member is caused to be turned because of its direct attachment to the operating handle 34 described in conjunction with FIG. ll. Inasmuch as in FIG. l the handle 34 is to be turned clockwise, the cam and gear member is caused to rotate in the counter-clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 5; A pawImember illustrated and described hereinafter prevents the member 58 from being rotatable in the wrong direction.

The camand gear member 58 is disposed in a hollowed-out,.circular portionof the frame assembly 55, with its teeth 57 arranged to mesh with those of a small drive gear 66. Gear 66 is affixed such as by a set screw 69 to one end of a-rotatably mounted screw member 68, with the rotation of gear 66 by the member 58 causing a commensurate rotation of the member 68. A gearlike member 88 is attach ed to the end of member 68 opposite the gear 66, latter being accomplished by the provision of a set screw .89 disposed in a collar 87 attached to member 88. However, it is to be noted that although the member 88 turns with the threaded screw member, the teeth of member 88 do not mesh with teeth 57 of the large cam and gear member 58.

Upon the screw member 58 is threadedly disposed a traveler 70, which can move longitudinally either upwardly or downwardly as viewed in FIG. 5, depending on the direction in which the screw member 68 is caused to rotate. It is to be noted that the member 68 is held in substantially parallel relationship with the frame assembly 55 and the cam and gear member 58 by means of a mounting member or bracket 75 secured to the frame assembly by a plurality of screws or the like. It will be seen from FIG. ,5 that member 75 is provided with a stabilizer slot 78 that is substantially coextensive and parallel with the threaded screw member 68. Disposed to move upwardly or downwardly in the stabilizer slot 78 is a stabilizer pin 76 attached to traveler 70, that serves to prevent the member from engaging in free rotation about the screw 68 instead of moving longitudinally in the desired manner.

With regard to the rotation of the threaded screw member 68- by the cam and gear member 58, it should be noted that after causing rotation of drive gear 66, the member 58 comes to rest in a position in which the incomplete portion of its periphery is adjacent the gear 66, as shown in FIG. 6, thus making it possible for the screw member 68 and the members 66 and 88 to be turned in the opposite or timedissipating direction by a means yet to be described, without interference from the member 58.

It should now be apparent that the customer may, by turning the operating handle 34, impart an ensuing rotation in a first direction to the threaded screw 68 and thus cause threaded traveler member 70 to correspondingly move away from the starting position in a first or time storage direction, which in this instance is an upward direction as viewed in FIGS. 5 and 6. With the deposition of each additional coin, and with another turn of the operating handle 34, a customer may index the traveler further upward, thus obtaining additional display'time.

Mounted on one side of the traveler is an indicator arm 72 visible in FIGS, 6 and 12, whose tipmost portion may be observed by a customer through an indicator slot 74 disposed in the front housing member 25 as shown in FIG. 1 at 40. The indicator slot 74 may be incrementally marked so that a customer may see from the position of the tip of arm 72, where the traveler is, and consequently be made aware of the time remaining for display of a given card or poster.

In order to prevent unlimited display of a given advertising notice or the like, means are provided in accordance with this invention for periodically indexing the time storage means in a second or time utilization direction, downwardly in this instance. Such means principally comprise a solenoid and armature arrangement shown in detail in FIG. 5. Solenoid 84 is held in. aposition generally perpendicular to the frame assembly 55 by means of a mounting member 125, which provides and makes possible a vertical axis of rotation for armature 124. Latter armature is caused to pick up and rotate each time the solenoid 84 is energized, thus to move an elongate arm portion 127 of the armature in a direction toward the threaded member 68, which is againstthe bias of leaf spring 128 that is fastened by means of screws or other suitable attachment means to the mounting member bearing the solenoid. The endmost portion of the elongate arm member 127 hingedly supports a pawl member 126 that is arranged to engage the gear teeth of the small drive member 88 each time it is moved. It should be apparent that the pawl member is prepared for successive engagements with the teeth of the small drive member by the combined action of the solenoid and the leaf spring 128. Thus, rotation of the member 88, and consequently rotation of the member 68, will take place in these-called other or timedissipating direction each time the solenoid is actuated, which actuation is typically arranged to take place on a regular basis.

Other components illustrated in FIG. 5 include override safety arm which is fastened near the top portion of the frame assembly bymeans of holding clamp 100, latter clamp providing a generally horizontal axis of rotation for the override safety arm 80. A counterweighted portion'98 of latter arm is arranged to be en gaged by an actuating pin 77 mounted upon the traveler 70 should the traveler be caused to move upward to a certain point. It will be seen by reference to FIG. 10 that as the traveler 70 reaches such a point, representing its extreme travel in a first direction, the actuating pin 77 engages counterweight member 98 of member 80, thereby moving a hooked portion of the arm 80 into access hole 96 and obstructing the coin slot 18. This obstruction of the coin slot desirably takes place before the traveler 70 reaches the collar portion 87 of the small drive gear 88. Once the traveler has been caused to move to the position of its extreme travel in the time storage direction as shown in FIG. 10, it is desirable not only to dissuade the customer from attempting to purchase additional display time, but also to prevent further operation of the display unit in the time storage direction, thus protecting the operating mechanism from damage. In conjunction with the override safety arm arrangement, which may also be referred to as a coin inhibiting means or a coin slot inhibiting means, a pawl and locking cam are used to prevent further rotation of the operating handle, as will be described hereinafter with referenceto FIGS. 2327. It is worthy of note that the counterweight 98 serves to keep the safety arm or inhibit arm rotated out of the coin slot 18 until the maximum display time has been purchased.

It will be seen in FIGS. 5 and 6 that a rounded nose or cam portion 59 of the cam and gear member 58 is arranged to contact a cam surface 102 of an actuating member 60, latter member being mounted to be slidable in a generally horizontal manner in a mounting slot 62 best illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 20. Contact with the nose portion 59 of the cam and gear member produces a lateral movement to the right in FIGS. 5 and 6, of actuating member 60 against the bias of a compression spring 92 contained on guide pin 104. Because the actuating member is configured to have an abutment portion 60a as shown in FIG. 7, such movement of the member 60 to the right causes the abutment to contact switch arm 67. This arm is hingedly attached to the microswitch 64 mounted on the frame assembly, and contact with the abutment causes the arm to move to the position best seen in FIG. 12, in which the microswitch 64 is in the electrically closed position. The microswitch is electrically connected in series with the solenoid 84 and a second timing switch 110 (FIG. 32) used for activating the solenoid so as to bring about movement of the traveler in the second or time utilization direction. By means ofa wiring arrangement to be discussed hereinafter, it is possible for a plurality of my display units to be connected to a single power source, and for such a plurality of units to utilize either individual timing mechanisms or a common timing mechanism for actuating the solenoids of the units, thereby simplifying the electrical interconnection of a grouped array of units and reducing the power requirements of same.

Thus, the actuating member 60 moves the switch arm 67 to close the contacts of microswitch 64 when the nose portion 59 of cam and gear member 58 has been rotated sufficiently to cause lateral movement of the member 60. Inasmuch as it is desired for the microswitch to be held in the closed position for a length of time corresponding to the time purchased, I provide, as

shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 12, a latch and tripping arm 82 which is biased upwardly by means of a spring 83. Thus, upon the actuating member 60 being caused to slide from the position shown in FIG. 6, into the position shown in FIG. 12, the latch and tripping arm 82 functions to hold the member 60 in the locked position, as shown in latter figure.

It should be clear that while a card or poster is on display, the switch arm 67 needs to be held in the position holding the switch 64 closed. However, with the passage of time, the solenoid 84 is actuated a comparatively large number of times, thus causing the traveler 70 to continue to move downwardly.

Eventually, the traveler moves sufficiently far in the downward direction that the actuating pin 77 contacts the upstanding portion of the latch and tripping member 82. This causes latter member to move against the bias of spring 83 to such an extent as to release the actuating member 60 from the latched position of FIGS. 5 and 12, and allow it to move laterally to the left under the influence of spring 92, thus to assume the position shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The switch arm 67 is thereby allowed to move and open the microswitch 64,

which removes this particular display unit from the timing circuit involving a central clock mechanism employed to govern movement of the traveler 70 of a plurality of units in a time utilization direction.

It is important to note that in addition to serving the electrical function of opening and closing microswitch 64 at appropriate times, the actuating member 60 controls the operation of a card receiving means that is operable between a position suitable for receiving and displaying a card, poster or the like, and a position in which latter card is removed from public view and ejected from the display unit. As shown in FIG. 6, the card receiving means principally comprises a card receiving member 28 slotted to receive a side portion of a display card or the like, and a stationary card holding member 108. The member 28 is generally of a U- shaped cross-section, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, with the one portion or leg being of somewhat extended length, to form a flange. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the card receiving member 28 is attached to a vertically disposed guide rod 106, latter member being held in the appropriate position, typically parallel with the frame assembly 55, by means of upper and lower support members 107. The support members 107 permit the guide rod and its attached card receiving member 28 to rotate as may be required by the related movement of the actuating member 60. Movement of the member 60 to the right brings about contact with the pin 94 that extends outwardly from the member 106, bringing about rotation of latter member, and thus causing an ensuing rotation of the card holding member 28 into the card-receiving position. However, upon the member 60 moving to the left under the bias of spring 92, a collar-like portion 93 forcefully engages the pin 94 and moves the member 28 in the cardejecting direction, thus to cause an ejection of the card as shown in FIG. 8.

Thus, when a customer deposits a first coin and rotates the operating handle 34, he or .she causes the rounded nose portion 59 of the cam and gear member 58 to contact the actuating member 60, moving that member laterally to the right and causing by means of the drive gear arrangement previously discussed, an upward movement of the traveler 70 in a first or time storage direction. Movement of the actuating member 60 to the right also produces a corresponding movement.

of switch arm 67, thereby completing the timing circuit between microswitch 64, the solenoid 84, and the central timing mechanism so that a periodic indexing of the traveler 70 downwardly can take place.

To continue this brief summary, the movement of member 60 to the right causes the card holding mem ber 28 to move into the card-receiving position, in which it is substantially aligned with the member 108 as well as the card insertion slot 16. As should now be clear, the spring-biased latch and tripping arm 82 locks the actuating member 60 in the rightmost position shown in FIG. in which the card holding member 28 and the microswitch 64 are held in operative positions.

FIGS. 11 through 19 are concerned with a gate 114 utilized just below the top portion of my housing to periodically occlude the card insertion slot 16. It should be noted that the movable gate is operable between a gate-closed position'in which the card insertion slot is obstructed to prevent removal of a given card, and a gate-open position in which a customer may insert a previously prepared display card or advertising message.'Deposition of a coin and rotationjof the operating handle 34 further causes the gate114 to move into a gate-open position, this being brought about by the operation of a cam member 112, that is disposed on one side of the main body of the push button release member 20, as best seen in FIGS. 13 through 15. I preferably use a square or hex upper end on the guide rod ,106, and the interior of the member 20 is configured in a complementary fashion such that as the member 106 is caused by movement of the member 60 to rotate, the member 20 as well as the cam member 112 are also I caused to rotate, with various operative positions of the cam 112 being illustrated in FIGS. 15 through 18. It is to be noted that the gate member 114 is equipped with a pair of diagonally disposed slots 118,

with a pair of gate support members 116 in the form of small screws, bolts, pins or the like being disposed in the slots. A tension spring 120 is utilized to normally biasthe gate 114 to the left as viewed in the, above referenced figures,.which, because of the angularity of the slots 118, causes the gate member to be normally positioned to occlude the card insertion slot 16, in the manner shown in FIG. 16 and FIG. 19. However, upon rota- .tionof the guide rod 106 in the counter-clockwise direction as viewed in these figures, resulting of course from the movement to the right of the actuating member 60, the cam member 112 comes into contact with the lefthand edge of 114, causing movement of the gate member to the right as illustrated in FIG. 17, and of course allowing the patron to insert his card or poster.

At this point it should be mentioned that the push button release member 20 is vertically movable to a certain extent, with the previously mentioned compres' sion spring 30 normally biasing the member 20 into its uppermost position just below the top 14 of the housing unit, as illustrated in FIG. 14.When in the position shown in FIG. 14, the cam member 112 is serving to hold the gate 114 in its open position, which is of course against the bias of .tensionspring 120. There fore, if the patron after inserting his or her card then depresses the button 20,- it moves downwardly against the bias of spring 30 to a lowerposition in which the cam 112 is below the plane of the gate 1 14, thus allowing the gate under the influence of the tension spring 120 to move into the slot occluding position shown in FIG. 18, and preventing someone else from tampering with the card inserted by the purchaser.

The card or poster of course remains in the display position until continued movement of the time storage means in the second or time dissipation direction brought about by the continued actuation of the solenoid brings about sufficient rotation of the member 68 to bring the traveler 70 into its lowermost position. In latter position, of course, the actuating pin 77 on the traveler comes into contact with the upwardly extending portion 85 of the latch and tripping member 83, forcing the latter member to release the member 60, so that under the influence of spring 92 it can slide back to the lefthand position shown in FIG. 6 and thus bring about, among other things, the ejection of the card or poster. Inasmuch as the card or poster is usually of a comparatively flexible texture, rotation of the card receiving member 28 causes the card to be flexed to a greater and greater extent until the edge of the card retained in the stationary card receiving member 108 is drawn free of that member. At the instant in which the card is drawn free of member 108, a spring-like motion of the display card results, during which the card is caused to be ejected from the back of the unit as shown in FIG. 8. As may be seen in FIG. 4, the ejected cards may fall from adjacently disposed units to a common card collection bin below. It will be remembered that the movement of actuating member 60 to the left also causes switch arm 67 to move so as to open the contacts of microswitch 64, at which time the display vunit is removedfrom the timing circuit, with the newlyemptied display unit being ready for use by another customer.

In order to understand the functional relationship of the components activated by the operation of the operating handle 34, the frame assembly should be considered in greater detail. It will be seen in FIG. 20 that I have illustrated a sub-unit 130 of the main assembly 55, which sub-unit comprises a plurality of generally rectangular frame members 132 with portions removed to accommodate assembly screws (not shown); the slidable actuating member and rotating ratchet member 134 of FIG. 21, upon the other side of which is mounted the cam and gear member 58. The sub-unit illustrated in FIG. 20 is intended to provide a bearing surface against which the back of the ratchet member 134 may rotate. Around the periphery of the rotating ratchet member are disposed a plurality of ratchet teeth 136 to prevent rotation in the wrong direction, although these preferably do not extend around its 7 complete periphery. Mounted on an operating shaft 138 and adjacent to the rotating ratchet member 134 is a cam and coin bearing member 140 whose function will become apparent in subsequent discussion.

FIG. 22 illustrates another sub-unit 130 or portion of the frame assembly 55 comprising two additional generally rectangular frame members 132 suitably fashioned to provide a lateral coin chute 48, and clearance for the previously mentioned rotating ratchet member 134. The coin slot 18, the slug removal slot 32, and clearance spaces for a locking cam 144 and a pawl 146 are also provided. A centrally located hole 148 in member 132 allows the rotatable operating shaft 138 to extend through the front frame member so that the operating handle 34 may thereafter be afiixed. It should be noted that the operating shaft 138 also extends through the rotating ratchet member 134, to which it optionally may be affixed. The shaft provides means for centrally positioning the cam and gear member 58 and affixing same by means of screws or other attachments to the back of the rotating ratchet member 134 in the proper manner and relationship as generally indicated in FIGS. and 6.

Inasmuch as it is a principal object of my invention to be financially remunerative for the owner or operator of such device, it is desirable to prevent my display units from being activated unless a suitable coin has been deposited. Consonant with the above requirement, I provide the arrangement shown in FIGS. 23-27 in which portions of the front frame-member have been broken away to reveal certain of the components integral to the proper functioning of the coinreceiving mechanism as set forth in my invention. As shown in FIG. 23, the locking cam 144 is biased by means of a leaf spring 145 to engage an upper portion of the empty coin bearing slot 150, thereby interrupting the movement of the cam and coin bearing member 140 and preventing actuation of the time storage mechanism by one who has not deposited a proper coin. In other words, in order for my display mechanism to be activated, a customer must first purchase with the deposition of a suitable coin, the privilege of turning the operating handle 34 in the appropriate direction.

As shown in FIG. 27, the cam and coin bearing member 140 containing a U-shaped coin bearing slot 150 must be properly aligned by the customer in order for a coin to fall directly from the coin slot 18 into the coin bearing slot 150. As may be see in FIGS. 24 and 25, a leading surface of the locking cam 144 contacts the edge of a proper coin contained in the coin bearing slot, thus lifting the locking cam away from the locked position of FIG.- 23 so as not to interfere with continued rotation of the coin bearing member 140. The coin is thus carried in a rotative sense by the coin bearing member 140 to the lateral coin chute 48, where as may be seen in FIG. 26, the force of gravity removes the coin 46 from the coin bearing slot, thus emptying latter slot for the reception of subsequent coins. As shown in FIG. 4, the coin falls into bin 52, and the rotative members continue through the rotative cycle. A further 360 rotation of the handle 34 at this time would move the traveler 70 further upward, but the cam 144 of course prevents this until such time as a subsequent coin has been deposited.

As will be understood, it is desirable to limit the rotation of the operating handle to a single direction in order to prevent non-authorized movement of the time storage means in a time utilization direction. If this precaution were not taken it would also be possible for a passerby to cause the ejection of a given card by turning the operating handle in a direction opposite the time storage direction. The pawl member 146 insures by its interaction with the teeth of ratchet member 134 that the operating handle can be rotated only in a direction appropriate to activation of the display unit, thus protecting the customer against the unauthorized ejection of his card; see FIG. 27. The pawl member 146 also accomplishes the alignment of the coin bearing slot 150 with the coin slot 18, which is a prerequisite for the coin to fall from the coin slot 18 into the coin bearing slot 150. As shown in FIG. 27, the end portion of the pawl member 146 slidably contacts a portion of the ratchet member 134 which lacks ratchet teeth, thus permitting that member to be turned for a limited extent in a direction opposite the time storage direction until the pawl contacts the leading edge of a first ratchet tooth, at which time the coin slot 18 and the coin bearing slot 150 are aligned in the proper relationship for coin deposition.

It should be apparent to the careful reader that a single coin 46 purchases only one revolution of the operating handle 34, although alternate arrangements may depart from this restriction within the spirit of my invention. In the preferred embodiment, subsequent coins must be inserted to cause the traveler to move further in the time storage direction.

As was indicated earlier, it is desirable to provide means of interlocking and electrically interconnecting a plurality of display units, and to this end I provide the grooved or slotted channel member 42 thus facilitating the electrical connection of a plurality of units to a single power source by utilization of the member 42, which is equipped with as many electrical contacts as there are slots to receive the support pins 24; see FIG. 28.

As was discussed in relation to FIG. 4, it is desirable to provide means whereby coins 46 may fall from a plurality of display units into a common coin retrieval bin 52, and in order to provide such means at minimum expense, I utilize the side rails 22 and front flange member 23 disposed on theside portions 21 of the display units in the manner shown in FIG. 30. Thus, the side rails 22 and flange members 23 of laterally adjacent display units align to provide the aforementioned coin slot or channel 50. Proper alignment of the rails and flanges is of course assured by means of the slotted channel member 42. As shown in FIG. 29, a spring 152 biases the contact of the support pin 24 into firm electrical contact with the contact 154 disposed in the member 42. 4

It is desirable to provide for the periodic actuation of the solenoid 84 of each display unit in which a coin has recently been inserted, such solenoid of course being utilized in order to bring about movement of traveler 70 in a direction opposite the time storage direction, back to the starting position. 'A preferred circuit arrangement involves the coil or winding of solenoid 84 being placed in series with the aforementioned switch 64, and a timing switch associated with the timing arrangement depicted in FIGS. 3L35. I prefer to utilize a standard 110 volt A.C. system, with the winding of the solenoid being energized only if the microswitch 64 has been closed by the deposition of a coin, and then only at subsequent intervals determined by the timing arrangement. As an ancillary feature, I may in some installations utilize an illumination means for illuminating the customers card, with the lamp being turned on only when the actuating member 60 is in the latched position shown in FIG. 12, such being brought about for example by a switch ganged to operate with microswitch 64.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 3234, an exemplary arrangement is there shown for timing the operation of the solenoid and for causing it to be actuated periodically, such as for example, once every 6 hours. In this arrangement a standard clock mechanism shown in FIG. 34 is provided for driving, by means of an appropriately geared arrangement, a supporting disc 162 in rotation, this disc preferably making one revolution every twenty four hours. Upon the disc a number of leaf type springs 164 are disposed in spaced relation about its periphery. These springs are comparatively flexible and extend for a predetermined distance beyond the edge of the supporting disc, with a selected number of springs being employed on a given disc. For example, four springs can be utilized, but the number of springs may be increased to eight as shown in FIGS. 32 and 33 if the traveler 70 is to be moved in the return direction in more frequently occurring increments of time.

As the supporting disc 162 rotates in the counterclockwise direction as shown in these figures, a fixed intercepting roller 1166 causes each successive leaf spring to be flexed in the general manner shown in FIG. 33. As will be understood, as the disc continues to rotate, the leaf spring is caused to flex to a greater extent until it eventually clears the roller 166. At the instant the leaf spring does clear the roller, a whip-like motion ensues during which the rapidly moving leaf spring instantaneously contacts the operating arm 168 of the timing switch 110, closes the switch for a moment, and then passes beyond. This instantaneous closing of the switch 110 closes the circuit in which thesolenoid 84 of one or more display units is disposed, which of course causes the traveler 70 of the unit or units to be moved in the return of time utilization direction for a pre-established distance,

As previously discussed, the winding of solenoid 84 is disposed in series with the microswitch 64 and the time switch 100, so inasmuch as the microswitch 64 was necessarily closed at the time of the insertion of the coin (or the first coin of a series if more than one coin was deposited by a customer), the closing of the timing switch 110 by the sudden encounter with a leaf spring completes the circuit and causes the respective solenoid to be momentarily energized. The traveler continues to be moved downwardly by continued encounters of the switch arm'l68 with the leaf springs until such time as the pin 77 contacts and then actuates the member 82, causing a release of the member 60 from the latched position, and accordingly releasing the arm of the microswitch 64 so as to break the circuit to the solenoid.

1 I claim:

l. A device having a minimum front-to-back dimension for displaying an externally inserted card or the like for a limited period of time, comprising a housing having afront, card supporting means disposed in said housing and arranged to position and support a card in a conspicuous position at the front of said housing, a threaded memberdisposed in a rotatable manner'in said housing, upon which a threaded traveler is disposed, said threaded member being disposed in a plane essentially parallel to the plane of saidcard supporting means and therefore parallel to the plane of a card on display, a cam and gear member interconnected with said threaded member, rotation of saidcam and gear member causing said threaded member to rotate in a first direction as the card is'put on display, and thus cause movement of said traveler in a first or time storage direction away from a starting position, and a slidable actuating member disposed adjacent said cam and gear member, the rotation of said cam and gear member causing said actuating member to slide into an operative position in which it becomes latched, latter member, when in such latched position, completing a circuit having means for bringing about periodic actuation of said threaded member in the direction opposite said first direction, said actuating member being released from the latched position upon said traveler returning to said starting position, thus to cause the breaking of said circuit, and means contacted by said traveler upon returning to said starting position for causing the operation of at least a portion of said card supporting means in a manner such as to eject the card from display.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 in which coinreceiving means are positioned in said housing so as to receive one or' more proper coins deposited by one seeking to place a card on display, means for causing rotation of said threaded member in said first direction as the first coin is inserted, thus to cause movement of said traveler for a certain extent in what may be regarded as a time storage direction.

3. The device as defined in claim 2 in which the purchaser can, by inserting additional coins, cause additional movement of said traveler in the time storage direction, thus to prolong the time said card is put on display.

4. The display device as defined in claim 2 inwhich side portions on the housings interfit when two or more display devices are joined together, thus to define coin slots by means of which coins inserted into the display units can be carried to a common bin.

5. The display device as defined in claim 2 in which slotted elongate members are utilized for supporting the display units, which slotted elongate members are supplied with electrical means for carrying power to the units from a remote location.

6. The display device as defined in claim 2 in which means are provided for supporting a plurality of display units as a group, with the arrangement being such that the card insertion slot of any one unit is not blocked by another unit.

7. The device as defined in claim 3' in which coininhibiting means are associated with said coin receiving means, said coin inhibiting means being arranged to function, upon said traveler reaching a certain location in its travel in the first direction, so as to prevent the insertion of additional coins during a given display period, at least until said traveler has moved fora distance back toward the starting position.

' 8. The device as defined in claim 1 in which a card insertion slot is provided in said housing, and gate means disposed adjacent said slot, said gate means functioning subsequent to the insertion of a card to prevent tampering with a card during the purchased display period.

9. The display device as defined in claim 1 in which side portions on the housings interfit when two or more display devices are joined together to form an array, thus to define coin slots by means of which coins inserted into the display units can be carried to a common bin, common timing means associated with the array of display devices, such that the periodic rotation with at least some of said pins serving as electrical contacts through which electrical power is supplied between housings of the display devices.

11. The display device as defined in claim 9 in which a card insertion slot is disposed in the top of each display device of an array, through which a card to be displayed may be inserted, said display devices being disposed in a vertically staggered relationship so as to make each card insertion slot easily available.-

12. A display device having a minimum front-to-back dimension for displaying an externally inserted card or the like for a limited period time, comprising a housing having a front, card supporting means disposed in said housing and arranged to position and support a card in a conspicuous location in the front of the housing, a threaded member disposed in a rotatable manner in said housing, in a plane generally parallel to the plane of said card supporting means and therefore parallel to the plane of the card on display, upon which threaded member a threaded traveler is disposed, a rotatable operating handle, a cam and gear member rotatably mounting in said housing and arranged in response to rotation of said handle, to rotate and interact with said threaded member to cause the rotation thereof in a first direction, latter rotation causing movement of said traveler in what may be regarded as a time storage direction, stabilizing means for positively preventing rotation of said traveler in response to rotation of said threaded member, the rotation of said cam and gear member also causing movement of a slideable actuating member, latter member having a latched position which, when moved into such position by rotation of said cam and gear member, closing a circuit to a variable timing means, said timing means causing intermittent rotation of said threaded member in its other rotative direction, thus to cause movement of said traveler in the direction opposite said time storage direction, said traveler, upon being caused after a display period to return to the starting position, causing the release of said slidable actuating member from the latched position, and the ejection of the card on display.

13. A display device as defined in claim 12 in which the inserted card is displayed for a period of time corresponding to the number of coins deposited, and in which said threaded traveler is arranged to move between two extreme positions, with the traveler in one extreme position representing the deposition of the maximum number of coins, said traveler, when in the one extreme position, actuating a coin slot inhibiting means, and in the other extreme direction of travel, contacting the card receiving means to bring about the ejection of the card.

14. The display device as defined in claim 12 in which coin refusal means mounted adjacent one end of said threaded member are provided to prevent more than a certain number of coins being inserted in a coinreceiving mechanism during a given period, said coin refusal means being actuated and caused to move into a position inhibiting the insertion of a coin at such time as said traveler has reached a certain point in its travel in the time storage direction.

15. In a display device having a minimum front-toback dimension and novel time storage means, and adapted for displaying a card, poster, or the like for a period of time determined by the number of coins inserted, said device comprising a housing having therein card receiving means operable when in a first position for supporting and maintaining the card or poster in a clearly visible and comparatively prominent position at the front of said housing, a coin receiving mechanism, means including a threaded time storage means for determining the length of time the card or poster is dis played, said threaded time storage means being rotatably mounted in a plane essentially parallel to the plane of said card receiving means and therefore essentially parallel to the plane of a card on display, said threaded time storage means being caused to rotate in one preestablished direction for a number of turns determined by the number of coins inserted in said coin receiving mechanism, a traveler threadedly disposed upon said threaded time storage means, with stabilizing means being used for positively preventing rotation of said traveler in response to rotation of said threaded time storage means, said traveler being caused to move longitudinally along said time storage means in a first direction as said threaded means is caused to rotate in said one direction, with the traveler being caused to move longitudinally in an opposite or second direction as said threaded means is caused to rotate in the other direction, means for causing said threaded means to rotate intermittently in said other direction with the passage of time, latter means including a solenoid that is periodically actuated to cause said traveler to move progressively in said second direction, and means actuated by said traveler reaching a certain point in its travel in said second direction, latter means including means to cause cessation of solenoid operation, and also including card removal means-operative to cause said card receiving means to move to a second position and thus bring about removal of the card from display. 

1. A device having a minimum front-to-back dimension for displaying an externally inserted card or the like for a limited period of time, comprising a housing having a front, card supporting means disposed in said housing and arranged to position and support a card in a conspicuous position at the front of said housing, a threaded member disposed in a rotatable manner in said housing, upon which a threaded traveler is disposed, said threaded member being disposed in a plane essentially parallel to the plane of said card supporting means and therefore parallel to the plane of a card on display, a cam and gear member interconnected with said threaded member, rotation of said cam and gear member causing said threaded member to rotate in a first direction as the card is put on display, and thus cause movement of said traveler in a first or time storage direction away from a starting position, and a slidable actuating member disposed adjacent said cam and gear member, the rotation of said cam and gear member causing said actuating member to slide into an operative position in which it becomes latched, latter member, when in such latched position, completing a circuit having means for bringing about periodic actuation of said threaded member in the direction opposite said first direction, said actuating member being released from the latched position upon said traveler returning to said starting position, thus to cause the breaking of said circuit, and means contacted by said traveler upon returning to said starting position for causing the operation of at least a portion of said card supporting means in a manner such as to eject the card from display.
 2. The device as defined in claim 1 in which coin-receiving means are positioned in said housing so as to receive one or more proper coins deposited by one seeking to place a card on display, means for causing rotation of said threaded member in said first direction as the first coin is inserted, thus to cause movement of said traveler for a certain extent in what may be regarded as a time storage direction.
 3. The device as defined in claim 2 in which the purchaser can, by inserting additional coins, cause additional movement of said traveler in the time storage direction, thus to prolong the time said card is put on display.
 4. The display device as defined in claim 2 in which side portions on the housings interfit when two or more display devices are joined together, thus to define coin slots by means of which coins inserted into the display units can be carried to a common bin.
 5. The display device as defined in claim 2 in which slotted elongate members are utilized for supporting the display units, which slotted elongate members are supplied with electrical means for carrying power to the units from a remote location.
 6. The display device as defined in claim 2 in which means are provided for supporting a plurality of display units as a group, with the arrangement being such that the card insertion slot of any one unit is not blocked by another unit.
 7. The device as defined in claim 3 in which coin-inhibiting means are associated with said coin receiving means, said coin inhibiting means being arranged to function, upon said traveler reaching a certain location in its travel in the first direction, so as to prevent the insertion of additional coins during a given display period, at least until said traveler hAs moved for a distance back toward the starting position.
 8. The device as defined in claim 1 in which a card insertion slot is provided in said housing, and gate means disposed adjacent said slot, said gate means functioning subsequent to the insertion of a card to prevent tampering with a card during the purchased display period.
 9. The display device as defined in claim 1 in which side portions on the housings interfit when two or more display devices are joined together to form an array, thus to define coin slots by means of which coins inserted into the display units can be carried to a common bin, common timing means associated with the array of display devices, such that the periodic rotation of the threaded members of the several display devices will take place at essentially the same time.
 10. The display device as defined in claim 9 in which the housings of a plurality of display devices are arrayed together, each of said housings being provided with a plurality of externally mounted pins, elongate supporting members for said housings, equipped with slots for receiving said pins, electrically powered timing means common to all of the housings of the display, with at least some of said pins serving as electrical contacts through which electrical power is supplied between housings of the display devices.
 11. The display device as defined in claim 9 in which a card insertion slot is disposed in the top of each display device of an array, through which a card to be displayed may be inserted, said display devices being disposed in a vertically staggered relationship so as to make each card insertion slot easily available.
 12. A display device having a minimum front-to-back dimension for displaying an externally inserted card or the like for a limited period time, comprising a housing having a front, card supporting means disposed in said housing and arranged to position and support a card in a conspicuous location in the front of the housing, a threaded member disposed in a rotatable manner in said housing, in a plane generally parallel to the plane of said card supporting means and therefore parallel to the plane of the card on display, upon which threaded member a threaded traveler is disposed, a rotatable operating handle, a cam and gear member rotatably mounting in said housing and arranged in response to rotation of said handle, to rotate and interact with said threaded member to cause the rotation thereof in a first direction, latter rotation causing movement of said traveler in what may be regarded as a time storage direction, stabilizing means for positively preventing rotation of said traveler in response to rotation of said threaded member, the rotation of said cam and gear member also causing movement of a slideable actuating member, latter member having a latched position which, when moved into such position by rotation of said cam and gear member, closing a circuit to a variable timing means, said timing means causing intermittent rotation of said threaded member in its other rotative direction, thus to cause movement of said traveler in the direction opposite said time storage direction, said traveler, upon being caused after a display period to return to the starting position, causing the release of said slidable actuating member from the latched position, and the ejection of the card on display.
 13. A display device as defined in claim 12 in which the inserted card is displayed for a period of time corresponding to the number of coins deposited, and in which said threaded traveler is arranged to move between two extreme positions, with the traveler in one extreme position representing the deposition of the maximum number of coins, said traveler, when in the one extreme position, actuating a coin slot inhibiting means, and in the other extreme direction of travel, contacting the card receiving means to bring about the ejection of the card.
 14. The display device as defined in claim 12 in which coin refusal means mounted adjacent one End of said threaded member are provided to prevent more than a certain number of coins being inserted in a coin-receiving mechanism during a given period, said coin refusal means being actuated and caused to move into a position inhibiting the insertion of a coin at such time as said traveler has reached a certain point in its travel in the time storage direction.
 15. In a display device having a minimum front-to-back dimension and novel time storage means, and adapted for displaying a card, poster, or the like for a period of time determined by the number of coins inserted, said device comprising a housing having therein card receiving means operable when in a first position for supporting and maintaining the card or poster in a clearly visible and comparatively prominent position at the front of said housing, a coin receiving mechanism, means including a threaded time storage means for determining the length of time the card or poster is displayed, said threaded time storage means being rotatably mounted in a plane essentially parallel to the plane of said card receiving means and therefore essentially parallel to the plane of a card on display, said threaded time storage means being caused to rotate in one pre-established direction for a number of turns determined by the number of coins inserted in said coin receiving mechanism, a traveler threadedly disposed upon said threaded time storage means, with stabilizing means being used for positively preventing rotation of said traveler in response to rotation of said threaded time storage means, said traveler being caused to move longitudinally along said time storage means in a first direction as said threaded means is caused to rotate in said one direction, with the traveler being caused to move longitudinally in an opposite or second direction as said threaded means is caused to rotate in the other direction, means for causing said threaded means to rotate intermittently in said other direction with the passage of time, latter means including a solenoid that is periodically actuated to cause said traveler to move progressively in said second direction, and means actuated by said traveler reaching a certain point in its travel in said second direction, latter means including means to cause cessation of solenoid operation, and also including card removal means operative to cause said card receiving means to move to a second position and thus bring about removal of the card from display. 